Simply Forty

whoa! just a single entry for this month, and it's on the last day of the month already (our dog Ziva's nine puppies are one month-old already! yipee!). march starts tomorrow.

celebrated my 40th birthday simply, with my family and close relatives. we all could fit at the table, we were that few. yes, few but still happy. daddy will be coming home this weekend to celebrate with us. i originally thought of not celebrating but changed my mind at the last minute. my mom was surprised yesterday when i bought groceries and some food items for chicken salad and food for the gods which i asked her to help me out with. we made it last night so that we only had to cook viands today. my aunty tata from next door even gave me a cake. it was a simple celebration, but a celebration nonetheless- thanking God for 40 good years. the only hitch was that a brownout suddenly occurred. so we dined and chatted and laughed (not to mention, me and my mom were at each other's throat) all throughout our candle-lit dinner. :-) there were two lads who suddenly appeared and sang Give Thanks. later on we learned they were members of a youth club and going around soliciting for donation. one of my nieces present uttered, "aunty gigik is so lucky somebody even came to sing for her." a blessing maybe?  then my mom told me to blow out a candle which i placed in a small glass bottle since it was way too small already. my niece Abbie (same name, yeah) got so ecstatic when the lights suddenly turned on right at the very moment i blew out the candle. her face was all aglow, so i just said, "see i just blew my birthday candle". and she clapped her hands, hahaha, gleefully saying, "yehey, good aunty gigik blew the candle".

ahh, life's simple pleasures!

Mommy's Birthday

it was mommy's birthday yesterday. texted her early since i slept very late (or rather already early morning) and got her reply just abour mid-day.

we are so blessed to have mommy in our lives. may the Lord continue to give us the gift of you for years to come. we love you, 'my!

HBD Kuya

happy, happy birthday to my kuya!

Donna's Birthday

wishing a friend in OZ a very happy birthday in advance, lest i forget.

Happy bday, dbols!

With a Grateful Heart

loads of love from family and friends. that's what i received on my birthday. and a deeper message from the Lord during my early morning reflection.

thank you, Lord. with all my heart. :-)

November's Here

kuya had his bday at home last week. he just turned 40. and that's when life begins....

and mommy will be celebrating her birthday in a couple of days. may God bless you both and may He continue to love you and hold you in His warm loving embrace. love you both!

Mister God's Face

Happy birthday Lolo Francis and Francis Thomas, wherever you both may be!

Mister God, once again I call on you to guide me in this life. I remember my blogs 5 years ago about lolo and Tom-Tom. Here's another excerpt from the book Mister God, This is Anna.

" One day Anna and Fynn attended mass. In the homily Fr. Castle, the pastor, spoke a lot about God. Anna noticed that he spoke a lot about "knowing" God and "seeing" God. And the pastor said that one day we would see God face to face. Anna paid close attention to what the pastor was saying but Fynn noticed that the little girl did not agree.

Suddenly Anna grabbed Fynn by the hand and whispered to him, though loud enough that those nearby could hear: "What will the pastor do when it comes out that God has no face, not even eyes? How then will people see God face to face?" Then she moved even closer and added:

"I'll tell you, Fynn, that Mister God has no face. He sees all of us on earth, every single one. But to do that, He does not have to turn around at all or even squint. See, Fynn, you and I have a front and a back. If I want to see something behind me, I've got to turn around because I don't have any eyes on back. But God only has a front and no back. He can look everywhere without turning."

How I wish I can look at life and understand and accept its mysteries in the simplicity that this little girl can. I just maybe have to start looking up to God without thought of His physical appearance, much less His face-lessness. I have to strengthen my faithfulness.

Belated Birthday

'twas the last month of the year when the boss called me in from my checks. i hurriedly went back to the office and found to my surprise that they are giving our birthday gifts to all of us.

whoa!!! my birthday was last february. i started thinking if this was for next year already. but they said it's for this year's... hahaha... some kinda belated ha! well, i was home that time, or should i say, was walking the streets of Ho Chi Minh.

still, i'm grateful...

thank you QCRD!

and of course, here's the birthday cake!

Bertdeyhan na Naman

we had another birthday celeb here in the house. it was cousin guiller's natal day yesterday. kaya kainan at kantahan to d max na naman. at laklakan pala para sa mga naiwan sa bahay nung gabi. i had to go to work (night shift) kaya kahit hinahabol ako ng tagay on my way out, dedma na lang. at heto ang mga ebidensiya:

my cuz roxy busy in the kitchen...

while cuz rene got busy singing videoke...

singit naman ako ng isang kanta.. na sinundan pa ng isa at isa at isa.... ",)

tim-tim singing with feelings...

and d fudang....

Mom's Birthday

namaga na naman ang mukha ko. i remember yong bday ko nung 2007. we were in singapore when my whole face went puffy due to the cold air. but anyway, yesterday was my mom's 60th birthday. yes, it's official. my mom is already a senior citizen. hahahaha.... :-)

she had a wonderful celebration at work and at home. saw her looking so pretty, she looked younger than her age. (o, ayan bumawi ako mommy). be blessed with the Lord's bountiful grace. we love you, 'my! stay healthy.

Vacation Update

flew home for a 15-day brief sojourn for my bday. arrived in manila at midnight via ek flight 334. and flew again next evening to HCMC with my mom and kuya's family. 'twas wonderful to have no work to think about for days but just have good fun with family. am starting to feel my age. really shouldn't be working myself to death anymore, but just be settled and staying home. just really want to be domestically focused these days.

flew back to work and settled some domestic flops at the flat.

Planning to go Home

Am quite excited for several days now. my bday's coming up. not that i'm looking forward to getting older. i'm actually excited about something else. will wait til i can finalize plans and ask my boss for the go signal. please Lord.... ",)

Bertdeyhan na Naman

It's Daddy and Esmuky's bday yesterday.

Wishing you both all the best that life can offer. Love you both guys! Mwah!

My Inaanak

I remember a time when i was asking my mom why i still do not have any inaanak seeing that my housemates have long lists being ticked off during Christmas season. And she answered maybe because my friends are still not married so there's no one to ask me to be ninang yet. Then friend Jing got married and lo, I had my very first inaanak, Malynn! Pagkatapos nito, naku sunod-sunod nang nagsipag-asawa ang mga kaibigan ko. Tama nga naman at may mga trabaho na. Kaya sunodsunod na ding dumami ang aking mga inaanak.

I still can't believe that it's been 12 years since. Ang tanda ko na! Hahaha...

To my inaanak, Malynn! May you grow up to be a wonderful lady and obedient daughter to your mom and dad. And be a good model to your younger brother and sister. You know they look up to you. Stay rooted in your faith and continue to serve the Lord in your own little way. God bless you, sweetie!

Thank You

i turned 36 yesterday. i've been through 3 sets of the chinese 12-year cycles.

i say thank you to God for everything. Lord, you are and always will be.

thank you to my parents for seeing me through all these years. you've been really, really wonderful.

and to all family and friends for being there.

Mommy's Birthday

I called early today. But it seems that early for me is not early for them back home... coz I'm like 4 hours late.. hehehe

I woke up early so I can greet Mommy on her special day. She said she’s in Cebu with Daddy and Aunty Gingging. It’s Aunty’s first session for her therapy. Aunty was all giggly when I talked to her, I guess just trying to keep light of the situation.

Daddy left Dumaguete early in the morning and met up with Mommy and Aunty in Cebu so they can celebrate Mommy’s birthday together.

I wish my Mom a peaceful year, a grace-filled year, a blessed year. I thank the Lord for the gift of my Mom. God has given us countless blessings all these years. Nothing tops the gift of my loving family.

Kuya's Birthday

My dearest brother has this thing about posting pictures on the web. He’s not comfortable with it. So I won’t go the lengths of placing his face here. And that’s good coz I don’t have to search for one anymore. Hahaha.

Kuya just turned 37. I called to greet him on his birthday and they were out for lunch, enjoying their favorite pizza. I miss being there with them, perhaps I would have joined them if I were still in Manila. I miss going to the malls with them and just hanging out, eating, window-shopping, making tambay at BookSale or ogling new gadgets in the computer world.

Here in Dubai, I don’t have the luxury of buying in the m alls as I still don’t have money to splurge. I’ve still got debts to pay back home. And my bills are not coming in, meaning penalty for overdue bills are piling up. It’s a difficult life.

HBD Daddy and Esmuky

it's daddy and esmuky's bday today.

Happy birthday to you both!

love you both so much!!!

Back to Square One

just like old times...

no work, no pay, no play.

i'm starting again from square one. trying to find work. trying to make it through the sem. trying to pay my debts. oh yes, trying to find my place in the sun. yet suddenly, i feel alive. it's like i've been awakened from a long sleep. indeed, there is a life out there.

talking about play... it was Langga's birthday yesterday. she had a simple celebration this year. soon, she'll be starting to be a lady already. she's so tall and her shoe size is already the same as mine. wow, i can barely imagine, my langga is already nine. can you believe it? wasn't it only yesterday when i received that call from my kuya while i was trying to keep myself from dozing off as i was on a night shift at work? he was so excited, you can almost hear it in his voice. "'Day, nanaganak na si Trish." (Trish has given birth. ) and guess what.. kamukha ko. (translated-- mana kay kuya dahil ako ang babaeng version ni kuya). friends would call me 'babaeng ivan" back in college.

i pray that my young niece will grow up to be a good-hearted, compassionate human being, full of passion for life and all that it has to offer. may you be strong and tough, gentle and kind, witty and wise, beautiful inside and out, and most of all, loving and loved.

we love you, langga! happy birthday!

At Gilly's for Jings Birthday

ang lakas kumanta ni mark!


we decided to eat out for jing's birthday. went to paseo and finally chose gilly's. while placing our order, napagdiskitahan namin si mark. inuudyukan nila meanne at lexa na dapat kumanta siya dahil may birthday celebrant kaming kasama. and he did just that. binigla kaming lahat nang may sumisigaw pagdala ng unang entree. sigaw nga yata iyon, hindi kanta... hehe.


bday celeb d gals with 'Mark'